This invention is concerned with the installation of ceiling panels or similar boards, sheets or the like in residential and commercial construction, especially where there are large surface areas to be covered with gypsum board or so-called "sheetrock" panels of a large, flat and rectangular shape, usually in 4.times.8-foot units with a thickness of about 1/4-inch to 5/8-inch, although sizes smaller and larger than 4.times.8-foot sections are also common. These large boards or panels are fastened by means of nails or screws to the ceiling joists which normally run perpendicular to the longest dimension of a room and parallel to each other on 12-inch or 16-inch centers. Detailed specifications for the materials and methods of installing such ceilings are readily available in standard books or suppliers' brochures, attention being directed for example to "Carpentry and Building Construction" by John L. Feirer and Gilbert R. Hutchings, publ. by Chas. A. Bennett Co., Peoria, Ill., 1976, pages 734-752, this subject matter being incorporated herein by reference as fully as if set forth in its entirety.
A long existing problem in the installation of such ceilings has been the need to use at least two people on the job in order to raise and hold each board or panel in place while it is initially applied to the ceiling joists and fastened in place. Only one prior reference has been found which attempts to address this problem, namely U.S. Pat. No. 3,953,015, issued Apr. 17, 1976, to John D. Taylor and Tommy R. Whitmer. Aside from this reference, the practice has always been followed in this art of using two persons to mount each ceiling panel and even three persons for larger 4.times.12-foot panels. For a more recent discussion of this problem, attention is directed to "INTERIOR FINISH: More Tricks of the Trade", by Bob Syvanen, an East Woods Press Book, Fast And McMillan Publishers, Inc., Charlotte N.C., 1982, pp. 22-23. While warning that a ceiling installation needs two people, the author also recommends the use of two "T" braces to temporarily wedge the sheetrock panel in place. But he also cautions that such braces must be exactly the right length between floor and ceiling to avoid serious problems. These "T" braces are also commonly used by one person to hold up one end of the panel while a second person nails or screws the other end of the panel in place. It is very difficult if not impossible for a single person to work with such braces or similar "makeshift" devices, and even with two people, it is quite difficult to work together and to accurately align and quickly install each ceiling panel across an entire room. Moreover, these known tools or devices offer no help in mounting the first panel in place, i.e. in the corner or along one side of a room.
The panel needs to be held firmly against the ceiling while the first nails or screws are fastened in place because movement of the panel during or after this initial fastening will cause the fasteners to loosen or to enlarge or distort the holes which they make in the panel. Errors in alignment of subsequent panels are then difficult to avoid, and extra nails or screws as well as repair work are necessary to correct a poorly fitted panel. In the past, these problems have been avoided only with the use of two people on the job.
It is thus a primary object of the present invention to provide a tool which will permit a single person to carry out a method of installing ceiling panels or the like in a rapid and accurate manner. Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon consideration of the following detailed specification together with the accompanying drawings and claims.